Chy's Fight
Donation protected
Cheyenne is in need of a kidney transplant. Your monetary donation will help Cheyenne's family with medical & ongoing expenses. Please read below for more information.
Cheyenne Grace AKA Chy, is 12 years old (almost 13!). She lives in Ford City, PA. She attends Armstrong Junior Senior High School. She enjoys playing sports. She has played basketball, softball, dance, gymnastics & cheerleading (her fav). She enjoys hanging out with her friends. She likes ice skating, boating, going to the beach, jumping on the trampoline and going to concerts.
Cheyenne has a big family! She lives with her Mom (Janelle), Stepdad (Brian) and 5 siblings! 4 sisters; Bella 13, Reagan 7, Lila 5 & Mollie 9 months. And one big brother, Landen 16. She enjoys spending one on one time with her Dad, Tim. She enjoys hunting & quad riding with her Dad.
Up until April 2020 Cheyenne has always been a happy, active, healthy kid. On April 30, 2020 she started throwing up. She eventually developed a fever. The PCP was called and due to Covid-19 precautions a Telehealth visit was done with Cheyenne on Monday May 4th. The doctor prescribed Zofran for her nausea and instructed Janelle to give her Pedialyte. The following morning she did not improve and in fact had gotten worse. Janelle called the PCP and was told to take her to the ED.
When arriving at Armstrong County Memorial Hospital she was given IV fluids and blood work was ordered. The ER doctor quickly came in to inform Janelle that Cheyenne's kidneys were not functioning properly and she was being taken to Children's Hospital of UPMC in Pittsburgh by ambulance.
When arriving at Children's she was directly admitted to the PICU. At this time her breathing had also become very labored. Everything happened so quickly. She was then placed on a ventilator. The last thing she said to her Mom was, "I am scared".
After many tests doctors finally started to understand what was going on.
Cheyenne was diagnosed with an Autoimmune Disease called Granulomatosis with polyangiitis or Wegener's. Her immune system mistakenly is attacking her body's own cells & tissues. This causes inflammation and damage to the blood vessels of her lungs and kidneys.
A kidney biopsy was preformed to learn how much damage had been done. Results shown that all of the filtering units in her kidneys are damaged. She will need a transplant to live a normal life again. She cannot receive the transplant until all the antibodies are gone. If done too soon the same damage can reoccur.
She is still in the ICU but will be heading home within the next weeks. Once she is home, Mom will be driving her to Pittsburgh 3 times a week so she can receive dialysis. Along with dialysis she will be on multiple medications. It's going to be a long journey but Cheyenne is a very strong little girl with a very strong Mama and family to support her.
If you could help support Cheyenne and her family by making a donation, I would greatly appreciate it. Any amount helps, as it all adds up.
Thank you.
Cari Sychak
(Mom of Janelle & Grandma of Cheyenne)
Follow along with us on Facebook #ChysSquad to cheer Cheyenne on as she continues to improve.
Cheyenne Grace AKA Chy, is 12 years old (almost 13!). She lives in Ford City, PA. She attends Armstrong Junior Senior High School. She enjoys playing sports. She has played basketball, softball, dance, gymnastics & cheerleading (her fav). She enjoys hanging out with her friends. She likes ice skating, boating, going to the beach, jumping on the trampoline and going to concerts.
Cheyenne has a big family! She lives with her Mom (Janelle), Stepdad (Brian) and 5 siblings! 4 sisters; Bella 13, Reagan 7, Lila 5 & Mollie 9 months. And one big brother, Landen 16. She enjoys spending one on one time with her Dad, Tim. She enjoys hunting & quad riding with her Dad.
Up until April 2020 Cheyenne has always been a happy, active, healthy kid. On April 30, 2020 she started throwing up. She eventually developed a fever. The PCP was called and due to Covid-19 precautions a Telehealth visit was done with Cheyenne on Monday May 4th. The doctor prescribed Zofran for her nausea and instructed Janelle to give her Pedialyte. The following morning she did not improve and in fact had gotten worse. Janelle called the PCP and was told to take her to the ED.
When arriving at Armstrong County Memorial Hospital she was given IV fluids and blood work was ordered. The ER doctor quickly came in to inform Janelle that Cheyenne's kidneys were not functioning properly and she was being taken to Children's Hospital of UPMC in Pittsburgh by ambulance.
When arriving at Children's she was directly admitted to the PICU. At this time her breathing had also become very labored. Everything happened so quickly. She was then placed on a ventilator. The last thing she said to her Mom was, "I am scared".
After many tests doctors finally started to understand what was going on.
Cheyenne was diagnosed with an Autoimmune Disease called Granulomatosis with polyangiitis or Wegener's. Her immune system mistakenly is attacking her body's own cells & tissues. This causes inflammation and damage to the blood vessels of her lungs and kidneys.
A kidney biopsy was preformed to learn how much damage had been done. Results shown that all of the filtering units in her kidneys are damaged. She will need a transplant to live a normal life again. She cannot receive the transplant until all the antibodies are gone. If done too soon the same damage can reoccur.
She is still in the ICU but will be heading home within the next weeks. Once she is home, Mom will be driving her to Pittsburgh 3 times a week so she can receive dialysis. Along with dialysis she will be on multiple medications. It's going to be a long journey but Cheyenne is a very strong little girl with a very strong Mama and family to support her.
If you could help support Cheyenne and her family by making a donation, I would greatly appreciate it. Any amount helps, as it all adds up.
Thank you.
Cari Sychak
(Mom of Janelle & Grandma of Cheyenne)
Follow along with us on Facebook #ChysSquad to cheer Cheyenne on as she continues to improve.
Organizer and beneficiary
Cari Sychak
Organizer
Ford City, PA
Janelle Shaffer
Beneficiary